This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. In this study, Dr. Shiloach's group transfected the MDCK cells with the human sia7te gene (ST6GalNAc V) for use as an alternative to embryonated eggs for influenza virus propagation and hemagglutinin (HA) production intended for vaccine manufacturing. We found that the hemagglutinin titer from the siat7e expressing cells was approximately 20 times higher than from the parental MDCK cells and the cell-derived viruses retained similar antigenic properties as those obtained from egg-derived viruses. To understand the mechanism of our findings, we characterized glycan expression on MDCK cells.